"Who goes there?!"
Tang Lie and Tang Wei were startled and looked toward the source of the voice.
They saw a graceful figure in green armor slowly emerge from beside the second tower.
The woman stood tall and straight as a pine, a greatsword strapped to her back and two short swords hanging at her waist.
Her emerald phoenix eyes were sharp as blades as they fixed directly on the two men. She shouted majestically:
"I am Hua Mulan, general of the Great Wall Garrison!"
"You trespassed into Chang'an. By law, you are to be arrested. Surrender peacefully, and you may be spared death!"
Tang Lie and Tang Wei acted as though they had heard the funniest joke in the world.
"HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!"
The two exchanged glances, then pointed at Hua Mulan with disdain and mocked her.
"So this is Chang'an, the number one power in the world? Don't you have a single man? You actually let some little woman be a general? You think you can stop us?!"
"We are from the Clear Sky Sect, the number one sect in the world. If you know what's good for you, lead us to your City Lord. Otherwise, we'll have no choice but to destroy a delicate flower!"
Hua Mulan's brows immediately furrowed, and her grip on her sword hilt tightened.
"Who says women are inferior to men? I can adorn my face before a mirror, and I can don armor that gleams coldly in battle!"
"Within three breaths, if you do not surrender obediently, do not blame me for showing no mercy beneath my blade!"
Tang Lie and Tang Wei froze briefly, then exchanged another glance, their eyes still brimming with mockery.
"Tsk, tsk. You little girl have quite the bearing, but whether your strength can keep up is another matter!"
"We'd like to see how you plan to deal with us!"
Before their words had even faded, the two simultaneously unleashed their martial souls, accompanied by the standard soul ring configuration of Title Douluos.
"Tang Lie, Seventh Elder of the Clear Sky Sect. Martial Soul: Earth Sun Clear Sky Hammer. Rank 93 Strength Attack System Title Douluo. Title: Lieyang!"
"Tang Wei, Third Elder of the Clear Sky Sect. Martial Soul: Clear Sky Hammer. Rank 92 Strength Attack System Title Douluo. Title: Weitian!"
The two exchanged looks, viciousness flashing through their eyes as they swung their massive hammers at Hua Mulan.
"If a divine beast does not show its might, do you take me for a koi fish?!"
A cold gleam surged in Hua Mulan's eyes as Soul Power suddenly erupted around her.
"The Qilin treads upon auspicious clouds, and all hardships in the mortal world shall vanish!"
A completely emerald-green Qilin soared out from Hua Mulan's body.
The Qilin raised its head and roared, making heaven and earth tremble violently. Nine rings appeared in an instant:
Black, black, black, black, black, black, black, black, red—!
"Martial Soul: Auspicious Beast Qilin. Rank 97 Strength Attack System Super Douluo. Title: Qilin!"
A terrifying wave of Soul Power swept outward, knocking Tang Lie and Tang Wei back several meters.
"Th-this... what kind of martial soul is this? It's terrifying!!"
The smiles on Tang Wei and Tang Lie's faces instantly froze, their expressions filled with horror.
"This little girl is so young, yet her Soul Power Level is actually equal to Tang Xiao's!"
"Her soul ring configuration is even more terrifying—it is identical to Uncle Tang Chen's!"
The two were completely panicked. Their former disdain had vanished, replaced by deep terror.
"Not good! Run!!"
They might have been arrogant, but they were not fools. Knowing they were no match for her, they immediately turned and tried to flee.
"Trying to run? Too late!"
Hua Mulan snorted coldly.
"Let me show you an advanced maneuver!"
"Second Soul Skill—Whirling Dance!"
Hua Mulan raised her left hand.
A light sword at her waist suddenly flew from its sheath, transforming into a streak of Flowing Light as it shot toward Tang Wei, who was behind the other.
Pale blue Soul Power coiled around the blade as it drew a graceful arc through the air and struck Tang Wei with perfect accuracy.
"Bzzz—"
The light sword trembled, and an invisible wave of energy spread outward.
Tang Wei felt his body suddenly stiffen, leaving him unable to move for the moment.
This was the silence effect of Hua Mulan's second skill in her light sword form!
"Immovable as a mountain, fierce as fire! Still as Ying, swift as the wind!"
"First Soul Skill—Sky-Splitting Slash!"
Hua Mulan moved her feet, her body charging toward Tang Wei like a ghost.
"Ninth Soul Skill—Blooming Blade!"
The instant she closed in, killing intent blazed in Hua Mulan's eyes. Her short swords returned to their sheaths, and she pulled the greatsword from her back with a sweeping motion.
The greatsword tore through the air with a piercing shriek, spinning as it slashed toward Tang Wei's waist.
"Third brother, block it!!!"
Tang Lie, fleeing ahead, suddenly turned and shouted a warning, but it was already too late.
"Pfft—"
Blood sprayed through the air as Tang Wei's body was severed at the waist by the spinning greatsword.
His body split in two and crashed heavily to the ground, disbelief still lingering in his eyes.
"This woman is actually so ruthless!!!"
Everything had happened in the span of a spark. Before Tang Lie could even grow angry, fear swept over his entire body.
"Third brother, seventh brother will return to the Clear Sky Sect and bring our brothers back to avenge you!!!"
Tang Lie secretly swore an oath. How could he dare linger any longer? He turned and fled madly toward the outside of the Great Wall.
"Where do you think you're going?!"
Hua Mulan sheathed her greatsword onto her back.
She drew the twin short swords at her waist and was about to pursue him.
"Bzzz—!"
At that moment, the patterns on the second tower beside them suddenly lit up.
Ye Han's gentle yet commanding voice entered Hua Mulan's mind.
"Mulan, there is no need to pursue him."
Hua Mulan halted mid-step. Without the slightest hesitation, she immediately stopped chasing.
She did not ask for any reason. She obeyed the City Lord's orders without reservation.
At that moment, four figures arrived from different directions.
They were Kai, Su Lie, Baili Xuance, and Baili Shouyue.
"Captain, what happened?!"
"Was there an invasion? Is it already dealt with?!"
As the four reacted in confusion, they looked at the corpse on the ground and scratched their heads.
"Eh, Captain, how should we deal with this corpse?!"
Hua Mulan sheathed her twin swords and looked down imperiously at the corpse on the ground.
"Divide it into four pieces and hang them from the four gates of the Great Wall. Let this serve as a warning to the outside world: those who trespass shall meet the same fate!"
Chang'an City, City Lord's Mansion.
Shangguan Wan'er watched Tang Lie flee and could not help frowning as she asked:
"City Lord, why did you stop Hua Mulan from pursuing him? Releasing a tiger back into the mountains may bring future trouble!"
Ye Han stood with his hands behind his back, a faint smile playing on his lips.
"This is also part of the plan."
"Letting him go is precisely so he can spread today's news and let everyone know the price they will pay for intruding into Chang'an!"
"As for the Clear Sky Sect, if they want revenge, we will welcome them at any time. Not to mention Sikong Zhen and Li Xin—even Kai alone could solo the entire Clear Sky Sect!"
Only then did Shangguan Wan'er come to a realization.
Her admiration for the City Lord deepened even further.
Just then, a series of heavy footsteps sounded from the entrance.
The two turned their eyes toward it and saw Li Xin striding in, carrying Dugu Bo in one hand.
Dugu Bo's eyes were tightly shut, and his face was pale. He clearly had not yet awakened from his earlier unconsciousness.
"Oh, General Li Xin was even more efficient than expected."
A playful smile appeared at the corner of Ye Han's mouth as he was about to say something else.
But suddenly, a familiar yet unfamiliar voice sounded in his mind:
[ Ding—! ]
[Detected a character who appeared in the original plot near the host. The Creation God System is restarting...]
┍━━{Creation God System}━━┑ [Host: Ye Han] [Soul Power Level: 91] [Number of Believers: 2778] [Faith Power: 9527] [Creator God Position Condensation Progress: 0%] [Reach Soul Power Level 99 to unlock God Position condensation] ┕━━━━━━━━━┙
Hearing the voice in his mind, Ye Han's pupils suddenly contracted.
The system that had vanished for an entire kun year! It had finally come back to life?!
It came back to life upon encountering a character who had appeared in the original plot. The meaning could not have been clearer.
After breaking through Rank 90, the Faith Power provided by ordinary humans and soul beasts had become useless!
If he wanted to improve further, he would need Faith Power provided by people who had appeared in the original plot!
No wonder the system had shown no reaction for the past kun year. So it had suffered from the drawbacks of "closing the country off from the outside world"!
Before you continue